Terrell Suggs active for today's game; Pollard, Yanda, Ellerbe out

Caption1. How will the Ravens fare against Peyton Manning?

Daniel Wallace, MCT

With superstar quarterback Peyton Manning at the controls, the Denver Broncos have become a formidable playoff contender. The Broncos have won eight consecutive games since an early October loss to the New England Patriots, and they've already clinched the AFC West. It's the longest win streak for the Broncos since the 1998 squad quarterbacked by John Elway won its first 13 games before making it to the Super Bowl. And obviously Manning has been instrumental in the run. He leads the AFC with 30 touchdown passes, and his 104.0 quarterback rating ranks fourth in the NFL. Although the Broncos have lost all of their previous five games in Baltimore, Manning has won all of his last eight starts against them. That includes two playoff victories over the Ravens, the last coming in the divisional round in January of 2010. What makes Manning so dangerous is how he has maintained his arm strength, accuracy and feel for the game after missing last year with a neck injury. And he'll provide an extremely difficult task for an injury-riddled Ravens defense to contend with. Containing Manning will require the Ravens to generate a fearsome pass rush. That's expected to primarily come from outside linebacker Paul Kruger and defensive end Arthur Jones, who have combined for 12 1/2 sacks this season. In the secondary, free safety Ed Reed needs to have an active game against Manning and read the quarterback's eyes to break on the football. With strong safety Bernard Pollard potentially sidelined Sunday after aggravating a rib injury, it's imperative that Reed play a superb centerfield to support James Ihedigbo, who would replace Pollard, and cornerbacks Cary Williams and Corey Graham. During a 31-28 overtime loss to the Washington Redskins last Sunday, Reed was well below his usual ball-hawking standard. And that translated into a vulnerable secondary. The Ravens can't afford to make mistakes Sunday against Manning. He's far too good to afford any significant errors, and wide receiver Demaryius Thomas is big, strong and fast at 6-feet-3, 230 pounds.

With superstar quarterback Peyton Manning at the controls, the Denver Broncos have become a formidable playoff contender. The Broncos have won eight consecutive games since an early October loss to the New England Patriots, and they've already clinched the AFC West. It's the longest win streak for the Broncos since the 1998 squad quarterbacked by John Elway won its first 13 games before making it to the Super Bowl. And obviously Manning has been instrumental in the run. He leads the AFC with 30 touchdown passes, and his 104.0 quarterback rating ranks fourth in the NFL. Although the Broncos have lost all of their previous five games in Baltimore, Manning has won all of his last eight starts against them. That includes two playoff victories over the Ravens, the last coming in the divisional round in January of 2010. What makes Manning so dangerous is how he has maintained his arm strength, accuracy and feel for the game after missing last year with a neck injury. And he'll provide an extremely difficult task for an injury-riddled Ravens defense to contend with. Containing Manning will require the Ravens to generate a fearsome pass rush. That's expected to primarily come from outside linebacker Paul Kruger and defensive end Arthur Jones, who have combined for 12 1/2 sacks this season. In the secondary, free safety Ed Reed needs to have an active game against Manning and read the quarterback's eyes to break on the football. With strong safety Bernard Pollard potentially sidelined Sunday after aggravating a rib injury, it's imperative that Reed play a superb centerfield to support James Ihedigbo, who would replace Pollard, and cornerbacks Cary Williams and Corey Graham. During a 31-28 overtime loss to the Washington Redskins last Sunday, Reed was well below his usual ball-hawking standard. And that translated into a vulnerable secondary. The Ravens can't afford to make mistakes Sunday against Manning. He's far too good to afford any significant errors, and wide receiver Demaryius Thomas is big, strong and fast at 6-feet-3, 230 pounds. (Daniel Wallace, MCT)

Under new offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell, a more democratic approach is expected to unfold. Unlike the fired Cam Cameron, Caldwell actually welcomes feedback and suggestions from his fellow coaches. With more ideas and opinions being expressed, the Ravens are hoping for better results from the ninth-ranked scoring offense and 18th-ranked total offense. Caldwell has already become a popular figure in the Ravens locker room with his genial, encouraging personality. The players are excited about what he'll bring to the table. He won't hesitate to use the no-huddle offense he helped install during the offseason. Caldwell has also streamlined the verbiage. Behind the scenes, Caldwell has worked to emphasize what the Ravens do best. That's expected to include plenty of touches for Pro Bowl running back Ray Rice and a more selective approach to deep shots for quarterback Joe Flacco. The Broncos' fourth-ranked defense is stout overall, so this week might not reflect the changes as well as the final two games of the regular season. Head coach John Harbaugh is expecting a highly motivated roster and coaching staff. " First of all, our players take responsibility for the fact that there even had to be a change," Harbaugh said Friday."That is something that speaks very well. The coaches the same way, we all feel responsible that there was even a feeling that a change would help us. If everybody was doing a better job, we probably wouldn¿t have gotten to that point. That¿s where it starts and to me that speaks well of our chances going forward. "On the other side of the coin, everybody is excited. Jim has done a great job in the meeting room. The coaches have done a great job. The players have done a great job of rallying. It's very seamless. It's what we do. We operate this way all year. We don't really miss a step as far as the process. Now it's just a matter of putting it together and taking what we've done on the practice field to the game field on Sunday."

Under new offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell, a more democratic approach is expected to unfold. Unlike the fired Cam Cameron, Caldwell actually welcomes feedback and suggestions from his fellow coaches. With more ideas and opinions being expressed, the Ravens are hoping for better results from the ninth-ranked scoring offense and 18th-ranked total offense. Caldwell has already become a popular figure in the Ravens locker room with his genial, encouraging personality. The players are excited about what he'll bring to the table. He won't hesitate to use the no-huddle offense he helped install during the offseason. Caldwell has also streamlined the verbiage. Behind the scenes, Caldwell has worked to emphasize what the Ravens do best. That's expected to include plenty of touches for Pro Bowl running back Ray Rice and a more selective approach to deep shots for quarterback Joe Flacco. The Broncos' fourth-ranked defense is stout overall, so this week might not reflect the changes as well as the final two games of the regular season. Head coach John Harbaugh is expecting a highly motivated roster and coaching staff. " First of all, our players take responsibility for the fact that there even had to be a change," Harbaugh said Friday."That is something that speaks very well. The coaches the same way, we all feel responsible that there was even a feeling that a change would help us. If everybody was doing a better job, we probably wouldn¿t have gotten to that point. That¿s where it starts and to me that speaks well of our chances going forward. "On the other side of the coin, everybody is excited. Jim has done a great job in the meeting room. The coaches have done a great job. The players have done a great job of rallying. It's very seamless. It's what we do. We operate this way all year. We don't really miss a step as far as the process. Now it's just a matter of putting it together and taking what we've done on the practice field to the game field on Sunday." (Algerina Perna, Baltimore Sun)

Strong safety Bernard Pollard is out with a rib injury he aggravated during the Ravens' 31-28 overtime loss to the Washington Redskins last week. He'll be replaced by James Ihedigbo, a former New England Patriots starter.

Pro Bowl offensive guard Marshal Yanda is sidelined with a serious sprained right ankle and will be replaced by veteran Bobbie Williams.

Starting middle linebacker Jameel McClain had already been ruled out with a neck stinger and back injury and visited a back specialist in Los Angeles with the team awaiting second opinion test results.

Starting tight end Ed Dickson was ruled out because of a hyperextended knee, missing his third consecutive game.

Starting inside linebacker Dannell Ellerbe was ruled out after attempting to convince the coaches and trainers he was ready to play during warmups. He was questionable with a sprained right ankle and a left foot injury and was limited in practice for the past two days. Josh Bynes and Albert McClellan are slated to start inside.

"I'm going to work it before the game," Ellerbe said Friday. "If I feel good, I'm going to go. If I can't go, I'm not going to goout there and hurt the team."